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Tall, Taller, Tallest Posted August 28, 2015 by Daniel Ostroff

At the 2015 Neocon, a “new” Eames product, the Eames Molded Stool, received Interior Design’s HIP Award in the category of Hospitality Seating.

The stool comes in two sizes: counter height on the left and bar stool height on the right. Some have wondered how “new” this chair really is.

In one sense, the seatingis new because this is the first time that the molded chairs have been offered as free-standing chairs in bar and counter stool heights.

In another sense, when Charles and Ray first introduced the shell chairs in 1950, the DAX, MAX and the LAX—three comfortable Eames Armchairs—came in a variety of heights, as seen in this early product sheet.

Then, in the 1960s, the Eames Office and Herman Miller offered “high” chairs with columnar pedestal bases that were fixed to the floor. They offered the stool below in heights suitable for both bars and counters.

Charles and Ray understood that, by modifying of the height of the bases, their shell chair system could address a number of seating needs.

Today, Herman Miller and the Eames Office identified a need for these new bar and counter height stools. Together, they created this new Eames product, which is deeply related to the Eames design legacy and history, and, in fact, is a taller version of the classic Eames chair shown below on the left.

The counter and bar height stools have bases that are extended versions of the dining and desk height base, with the added reinforcement of a square metal “stretcher,” which not only provides structural support, but also serves as a handy foot rest.